The State Sports General Administration today released the "China Outdoor Sports Industry Development Report" (2025-2026). As of the end of 2025, the number of participants in outdoor sports in my country will exceed 500 million, and the total scale of outdoor sports-related industries will be approximately 3.17 trillion yuan.
The infrastructure of outdoor sports venues has been consolidated at an accelerated pace. By the end of 2025, there were 2,626 ice and snow venues across the country, an increase of 39% from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan, including 1,723 skating venues and 903 ski venues. There are 182,000 fitness trails nationwide, with a total length of 430,300 kilometers, an increase of 104% and 106% respectively compared with the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan; there are 970 commercial rock climbing venues, more than 700 natural rock climbing sites, and more than 14,000 natural rock wall routes nationwide. During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, 2,200 new public wharf berths were added across the country, and water sports venues and facilities showed an expansion trend of agglomeration along the coast and accelerating the layout of inland rivers and lakes. The construction of the first batch of high-quality outdoor sports destinations has been steadily advanced, providing strong support for improving the quality of outdoor sports. Some selected areas have obvious growth characteristics such as passenger flow, inter-provincial visits and length of stay.
The supply of outdoor sports events continues to expand. The leading role of high-level events such as national championships, championships, and open competitions has been further highlighted. The channels for participation in grassroots events have continued to expand. Events have further spread to counties and towns. Public, youth and parent-child events have flourished, driving more people to participate in outdoor sports. In 2025, 594 marathon events will be held across the country, with 6.3987 million participants; 258 mountain cross-country running events will be held throughout the year, covering 29 provinces, with nearly 540,000 participants; the aviation sports participation group continues to grow, and the number of participants in model sports events will exceed 1.2 million in 2025; hundreds of automobile, motorcycle, bicycle, and triathlon events will be held throughout the year, and the popularity of event participation will not decrease. The General Administration of Sports, in conjunction with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, has continued to carry out brand activities such as "Travel with the Events" in conjunction with outdoor sports such as ice and snow, triathlon, and beach sports to accelerate the integrated development of culture, sports, and tourism.
The vitality of the outdoor sports consumption market has been effectively released. As of April 2026, there are more than 375,000 outdoor sports-related companies in existence across the country, and more than 17,000 new companies have been registered in the first four months of this year, reflecting the market's continued optimism about the development prospects of the industry. Monitoring shows that the customer group aged 19-49 accounts for 76.16%, and young and middle-aged people constitute the main consumer group of outdoor sports; outdoor sports consumption in third- and fourth-tier cities accounts for 42%, further releasing the consumption potential of the sinking market. During the 2025-2026 ice and snow season, the number of residents nationwide participating in ice and snow sports reached 308 million, with the ice and snow sports participation rate at 21.75%, a year-on-year increase of 1.14 percentage points. The ice and snow sports consumption scale was approximately 205 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of approximately 9.3%. The scale of the mountain outdoor sports industry is expanding steadily, with the industry scale reaching 500 billion yuan in 2025. People are enthusiastic about water sports and the market potential continues to be released. In 2025 alone, there will be 887 new marine sports-related companies, a year-on-year increase of 12.14%. In 2025, the per capita annual consumption expenditure of participants in national road running events will exceed 14,400 yuan, a year-on-year increase of approximately 7.1%. New materials and new technologies are widely used in outdoor equipment, and products such as carbon fiber hiking poles, skis, and smart sports watches have entered thousands of households.
